Chapter 17: Subduing the Xuanming Spiritual Fire
In this world, alchemists are also classified by their ranks.
If divided by hierarchy, the ranks of alchemists include Medic, Pharmacist, Senior Pharmacist, Medicine Ancestor, Medicine King, Medicine Emperor, Medicine Saint, Medicine Venerate, and Medicine Sovereign, totaling nine ranks, each corresponding to the grade of the pills.
For instance, a Medic can only concoct First Rank Elixirs.
If a Medic could transcend his rank to concoct a Second-turn Rejuvenation Pill, then he would certainly be noticed by the Holy Medical Valley, accepted as a disciple despite the norms, and become an exceptional Cultivator Physician of his generation.
Among them, Medicine Kings and alchemists beyond that rank are as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns in the Mortal Realm.
He had seen Jiang's constitution; although not a prodigy chosen by the heavens, it was nonetheless extremely good.
Presumably, due to the lack of resources in the Immortal Sect, it has taken him until the age of nineteen to reach the fifth level of Body Refinement.
"Thank you, Jiang, for your kind intentions, I take them to heart." Su Chang'an smiled faintly.
The two made a customary bow to each other and then went their separate ways.
Jiang Tang approached the disciples guarding this place and, after handing over seventy percent of the Spirit Grass and Spiritual Medicine as agreed, found a quiet inn to settle down and rest.
Entering the Spirit Field Space, Eryao, who was tilling the field, saw Jiang Tang, her face lit up with joy, and she dropped her hoe and threw herself into his arms, cooing, "Daddy."
"Eryao has grown heavier," Jiang Tang said as he weighed the Dragon Cub, noting that it had grown quite a bit.
"The Spiritual Energy here is abundant, and time flows differently from the outside world. Eryao has been absorbing a lot of Spiritual Energy and has spent a longer time here; naturally, I've grown quickly. Look, Daddy, Eryao has planted so many Spirit Grasses for you." Eryao pointed to the ox pen with a wide smile.
Jiang Tang touched Eryao's head: "Go rest, I'll take care of the rest."
Eryao obediently flew over to the ox pen and began to meditate and cultivate.
Jiang Tang first collected the Spirit Grass, and upon noticing the pile of weapons that the Spirit Grass had transformed into, he was momentarily stunned.
He gathered up the weapons and singled out a round Pill Furnace from among them.
This... seems to be an Alchemy Furnace.
Judging by its quality, it seems to be a mid-grade Yellow-tier Spiritual Artifact.
He was in need of an Alchemy Furnace, and here one had presented itself right before him.
Jiang Tang was pleased and quickly stored the Alchemy Furnace in his Qiankun Bag, tucking it close to his body, while the rest of the items were placed into the Qiankun Bag within his storage space.
He brought over Niu and found that it had also grown much stronger.
"Niu, after we finish plowing the field, let's take a rest," Jiang Tang patted Niu's head and flashed a grin.
"Moo—" Niu called out, put on the plow, and quickly finished plowing the remaining acre and a half of land with Jiang Tang.
Jiang Tang fed Niu a handful of Spirit Grass, removed the plow, and gestured for it to go to the ox pen, before he himself picked up a hoe to start breaking up the soil.
This time, he used Spiritual Liquid of his own concoction to irrigate the Spirit Field, which had doubled the quality of the soil compared to before, with incredibly rich Spiritual Energy. He believed the Spirit Plants that grew would be extraordinary.
He wondered if he could get his hands on some better farming tools.
As Jiang Tang thought this, he stirred the Golden Body Spell, and the action of breaking the soil sped up.
In less than an hour and a half, he had finished breaking the soil and raking the ground. When he began to sow the seeds and irrigate the Spirit Field, Jiang Tang suddenly discovered that his Golden Body Spell, which he hadn't cultivated for a long time, had unexpectedly advanced to the Intermediate Realm on its own.
Doesn't that mean his endurance and ability to take hits had reached a new level?
Jiang Tang watched the Spirit Field contentedly for a while as the seeds began to sprout, then withdrew to ponder over using the Xuanming Spiritual Fire for alchemy.
However, the Xuanming Spiritual Fire was, after all, an Exotic Flame, not as easy to manage as the flames generated by his own Fire Spirit Root. Losing control of the flame temperature, Jiang Tang accidentally burnt the pills completely.
After three days and nights of trying, having wasted countless Spirit Grasses, Jiang Tang, in unbearable pain, finally refined a First Rank Elixir of superior quality.
"Why are there only five pills in one batch?" Jiang Tang looked at the Pills that had just come out of the furnace and silently twitched the corner of his mouth.
Without using Exotic Flame, he could at least produce ten Pills in one batch.
At this moment, Jiang Tang had no idea that after binding with a master, an Exotic Flame would go through an adjustment period, after which it would completely submit to the master.
For an ordinary Medician at the level of an Alchemist, being able to Refine one or two top-quality Pills in an initial batch would already indicate exceptional talent.
If what Jiang Tang had just said were heard by the group of old men in Holy Medical Valley and Medicine Sect outside, they would surely be speechless with shock.
After bathing, Jiang Tang chose a First Rank Elixir named Heavenly Spirit Pill and took it to begin his Cultivation.
According to ancient texts, consuming this Pill could enhance one's Cultivation, and it wouldn't have any side effects nor would it affect one's talents.
For Jiang Tang, who currently had meager strength, this was precisely the kind of Pill he needed the most.
However, Jiang Tang also understood that true cultivation progress comes from steady effort. Any realm achieved through the accumulation of Pills would surely have hidden problems later on.
Therefore, he only used one Pill, intending to sell the rest to the Holy Pavilion in the future.
Three days later, Jiang Tang slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of stale air with a hint of discouragement.
He had reached the pinnacle of the Fifth Layer of Body Refinement, yet was unable to break through to the Sixth Layer no matter how he tried.
He wanted to take a look at the third Spirit Field as well.
Forget it, let's just let nature take its course.
With that thought, Jiang Tang casually ate a couple of plain steamed buns, then entered the Spirit Field Space and found that the Spirit Plants had matured, so he called Eryao over to help him with the harvest.
"Daddy, Eryao wants to go out and play." After resowing the two Spirit Fields with seeds, Eryao clung to Jiang Tang's arm, its eyes brimming with longing.
"Go, Daddy will take you out to play." Jiang Tang had already gotten used to how Eryao called him, and then he started quietly taking advantage of this little Dragon Cub.
He took Eryao out of the Spirit Field Space, and after bathing, they quietly left.
After all, this was the era after the resumption of Spiritual Energy, and the Dragon Clan had become the rarest Spirit Beasts since the golden age of Cultivation.
If he didn't carefully conceal it, someone with ill intentions might snatch away this little cub and slice it up to eat.
To Cultivators, Demonic Beasts were like animals to humans. People eat non-rank animals, while they eat ranked Demonic Beasts.
Although the Dragon Cub was a descendant of an Ancient Snow Dragon, it was still a fledgling with immature mentality and easily deceived. Thus, as its father, he naturally needed to protect his own cub properly.
After giving Eryao several instructions and seeing it nod obediently, Jiang Tang went to a vacant hill, allowing it to soar high into the sky.
As Eryao flew up high, riding the winds in excitement, it let out one long cry after another. The soul pressure characteristic of the Dragon Clan dispersed in all directions, startling countless birds and beasts.
Jiang Tang sat cross-legged, looking up at the Dragon Cub in midair.
The Dragon Clan, by nature, belonged to the sky, just as blue whales belonged to the ocean.
Throughout its healing period, the little cub kept talking about wanting to soar into the blue sky. Only the sky in the space was too small for the little cub to fly comfortably.
So, Jiang Tang brought Eryao out, allowing it to fly in the vast sky.
A gust of wind suddenly blew by, causing Eryao to sway unstably.
Jiang Tang was smiling when he suddenly heard a voice coming from behind—
"You little rascal, how dare you make me search high and low for you!"